The Scorpios

Monday, August 31, 2009

It was "Yellow Day" at school and we were told to send a yellow object each with the kids.Ojas & Tejas took a yellow tiffin box and a yellow car shaped crayon.We decided to follow the theme of the day and played a game of "spot the Yellow" on the road.And that was not too difficult because the road was infested with bright yellow autos. (Next time we do a difficult colour).We also spotted yellow trucks, yellow van (exactly like the one in their book), building, clothes, numberplates, boards, bus and even stopped to spot the tree full of yellow flowers.and to fit the theme, we picked up a yellow flower each to present to the teacher who was also wearing yellow.

And by the way- Quick Gun Murugan- Silly, nonsensical, hilarious and total fun. Go watch it!

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

We had fun playing the Traditional Style Snake & Ladder gifted by Rohini

A lovely collectible game painted on a thick cloth with metal dice set and wooden "gotis" housed in a cloth pouch, and a printed list of rules which are different from the usual snake & ladder.Some links on the history of the game

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

1. When you ask the blogger about a dinner or an event or a party, (s)he will more often than not tell you - I have already posted about it, read it on the blog".2. The blogger will have posts organised and scheduled for auto posting and at any given point of time there are atleast 3 posts on schedule and many more on draft.3. The said committed blogger will be on the look out for blogging opportunities at all times and be fully prepared with camera / phone camera always. Often will fret for days if a photo was missed and therefore the post is not complete in her/ his opinion. If anonymous, will take care to click pictures in profile or with face hidden so that it is bloggable. At some points, will never have proper photos- only bloggable ones.4. Will chide close friends and relatives for not visiting and commenting on the blog.5. Will forward related posts to relevant people - just incase they haven't already read it.6. Will be ever-ready to go for experiences or take time from busy schedule to explore a little know store or even organise stuff for the sake of blogging.7. Will note down blogworthy stuff for posterity if the computer is not handy at that moment.8. Will be such a committed scribe that even friends will say- never mind,I will check the blog tomorrow to know what happened (in the party)9. When asked on dates of some milestone or incident, the blogger will not try to recall, instead, will straight check in the blog for the details.10. Will do craft work/ cooking/ open gifts stage wise and keep photographing every stage for the sake of the blog post.11. It will serve as an alternate means of communication - may even be easier to elicit a response via the blog than the phone from the blogger

Monday, August 24, 2009

Played- on a difficult to get sleep night with the kids. Word antakshari.Started with A for Apple, passed on the last letter to the other one- E for...I was surprised that the words that were thrown up were not the common ones that we normally tell when we are playing A for, B for...A for Astronaut, D for Dinosaur, Y for yellow, W for water, M for Money, R for Rainbow, V for Volcano, T for Teddy, ...We came to R for and Ojas had to answerTejas- hints- that which we wear on the fingerOjas- ring

Then question to Tejas- G forOjas hints- that which we wear on handsNone of us could guess- Gloves

We had run out of words for T so I hinted- where you go susuTejas- delighted- BED!

I had a calendar with scented strips. Exposed the kids to the odours and I loved the way they could relate to the various odours- A floral rose smell was identified as "cream" by Ojas (Pond's?) Citrus was identified as juice (Tejas) And lavender as "deo"!I am pretty chuffed that way!

Friday, August 21, 2009

Andy & I had an enormous buffet lunch yesterday at the Taj Coromandal. Note the orchids on coal. But I do not have to lust after orchids anymore. I have some of my own now courtsey Andy! (Thank You)- detailed pics of the "potted plant gifts" will be shared later!

The Shubharambh was with the assortment of cheese (I love this part) and animal salads-

cheddar, gouda, salmon (fishy cheese- the one with the maroon layer on top) and the bright red one below (very alcoholic and ugh). Lamb, chicken and salmon cold cuts. The goblet has a single prawn with lotsa cheese dip & cabage- called prawn cocktail. The spoon has fish wrapped in spinach leaf and the bowl has fish again. Together with iced tea/ fruit cocktail- fantabulous!

Next we attacked the main course- more animal- dimsums, fish, chicken, (no lamb :((), potatoes- tandoori, kashmiri, you name them, we took them, and even paneer (not so great).

I even took 2 rounds of dahivada which provided tangy relief in between animals. If you are looking for rotis on my plate- they are not there. But Andy did try the chicken biriyai & tendeloin!

The grand finale the desserts-a s usual there was a sugarfree dessert too! I am repenting- there was a yummy sinful looking payasam that I did not take. I should have gone and loosened the churidaar strings while I was at it.

The tiny cup is chocolate-caramel tequila!! The large goblet is a chocolate/ vanilla souffle kind of thing- droolicious why didn't I take another one! damn this stupid stomach.

And all this was laced with gossip that began from 1.30 pm and went on till 6 pm!

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Thank you Print Lover for your tag & award. Honestly I am touched by what you have to say about me.

" Her posts are short and laced with humor. A free flow of words. No over-analyzing."

Coincidentally my aunt recently said the same thing about my writing- free flow!

The tag now...

1. What is your current obsession? cleanliness2. What are you wearing today? my attitude......salwar suit what else

3. What’s for dinner? eggs maybe, ah well definitely

4. What’s the last thing you bought? medicines

5. What are you listening to right now? sound of A/C6. What do you think about the person who tagged you? funny, talented, artistic

7. If you could have a house totally paid for, fully furnished anywhere in the world, where would you like it to be? does it have a garden?

8. What are your must-have pieces for summer? mangoes

9. If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go? Paris

10. Which language do you want to learn? of the Mind

11. What’s your favorite quote? KLPD

12. Who do you want to meet right now? The husband- I am spoiling for a fight13. What is your favorite colour? Black14. What is your favorite piece of clothing in your own closet? my black trousers that don't fit anymore

15. What is your dream job? a job is a job with any prefix..so does not matter

16. What’s your favorite magazine? Tinkle17. If you had $100 now, what would you spend it on? Rs 5000? usse kya hoga

18. What do you consider a fashion faux pas? matching matching19. Who are your style icons? anyone who can look styilish without extra effort

20. Describe your personal style.? currently? churidar & short kurta21. What are you going to do after this? Press Publish

22. What are your favorite movies? my standards are not very high that way

24. What are three cosmetic/makeup/perfume products that you can’t live without? lipstick, lipstick, lipstick...I can miss out the rest but never the lipstick23. What inspires you? Food

24. What do you carry in your bag? That's a post in its own right

25. What do you do when you “have nothing to wear” (even though your closet’s packed)? wear the one in which all parts of the set are traceable first

26. Coffee or tea? cold coffee27. What do you do when you are feeling low or terribly depressed? Pick a quarrel with the husband28. What is the meaning of your name? Moniker? obviously wants to keep writing

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Long ago, back in college, I was out with friends on my birthday. We happened to come across a cae festival going on in one of the hotels. We all walked in and had a fun time feasting on all varieties of cakes. Maybe the cakes were not very tasty - not as tasty as the truffles or black forest you get in hot breads or coffee day etc. But the experience was such fun that I always wanted to do it again.

That day since the hubby and I had decided we are not meeting on my birthday, and a group of us had the opportunity and the idea, so we went on a chocolate trek. Knowing fully well that I am not going to be getting any cake that night.

We went on a dessert parlour walk- just like in US one does a pub walk- moving from one pub to another as per the trail.

We did La Boulangerie in Harrisons, Maple Leaf & French Loaf and Ecstacy and ended with Mocha Mojo.

Dark chocolate is the one that's most happening now and so are concept chocolates like black forest.

Another very inetresting trend I noticed was deconstruction.So a black forest deconstruction was a cup of chocolate, with chocolate paste, cherry paste and vanilla cream topping. And interesting thing is that they are most delicious when eaten in combination.

(Ok so I am going to make rice daal and call it khichri deconstruction or daal, veggies & gunpowder and call it sambhar deconstruction)

Another interesting observation was the presentation- especially in Ecstacy and Mocha Mojo, the cutlery is a wow...the kinds that you want to slip in your bag when no body is noticing!

This is the Flake cake in Ecstacy (Sathyam)- a choco mousse with caramel icecream. The line of chocolate is part of the presentation. Not a smudge as one may tend to think.

What I have not yet confessed is that once we reached Mocha Mojo, the retro coffee place, I took one look at the menu that included chocolate based shakes like Ferrero rocher shake, Mars shake etc and ordered a pepper chicken plate while a friend ordered a Thai red curry Maggi.. (Yes Maggi..and I swear it was the most delicious one even for a non-Maggi-eater-as-a-rule - better made than the chicken

Ok and offcourse seeing the crowd in such places, I felt positively ancient.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Am I the only person in these and other parts who did not like Love Aaj Kal?I cannot pinpoint why. The story line was a tried and tested one. The execution idea was nice-the email connect, long distance relationship... the way Rishi Kapoor's (he is a dear) life & Saif's life were juxtaposed. Then why did I not like it? And not that I have very high standards. remember I am the girl who loves chicklit/flick.It was not a patch on jab we met for instance which I can watch any number of times. Maybe I did not like Deepika's jabbering. Or maybe I was not in a receptive mood.I also watched Fashion & Dasvidaniya - finally and ahem, liked them.

Monday, August 17, 2009

The apartment residents geared up and put together a series of programs for Independence Day.

The day began with flag hoisting followed by painting competition for the kids (Moms eh?)

For the first time I made the effort of dressing the kids in tricolors (and also self).

Ojas was in orange & white stripes with green pants and he insisted that the orange pants matched with his T-shirt. Tejas wore green & white with orange shorts.

Then there was a running race. Both of them came last in the larger group. So the group was condensed as there was age disparity. Seeing their poor performance they were grouped with kids about 1 year younger to them- Tejas came 1st among 4 kids who participated.

Afternoon I participated (as audience) for the quiz for older kids and could not get even a single answer right. Ah, well, anyway its too early for me. I await my turn. Another 7-10 years, I will know the answers when the kids grow up.

Evening we had the fancy dress for kids and for such a short notice between morning to eveningI had to come up with the costume and had to prepare the kids for the same.

The easiest costumes that I could think of were - fruit seller and monkey man since I had the fruits, basket, soft toy monkey that could go on the back and be firmed with the velcro on the hands and a dholak.

The fruit seller's costume was my dupatta converted to a lungi.

For an hour we practiced.

Tejas the Fruit SellerFruits Le lo.....

Ojas was the prop for the act - How much apple?

Tejas- 100 rupees

Ojas- no 50 rupees

Tejas- hands over the guava

Tejas' handing over the guava was so spur of the moment that I decided to convert that into the script.

Ojas the Monkey Man

Naach mere bandar paisa milega

Tejas the prop- monkey walla aayo

Ojas shows a few acts using the monkey

Offcourse I directed the entire show sitting at the foot of the stage.

The fruit act was perfect with heavy prompting from me.

The monkey act was ok except that Ojas refused to sing naach mere bandar and took the mike and said- bandar kaun hai? on stage

Later in the evening there was a tambola. Offcourse I never got a single prize as the numbers that were being called out were from a different set fo numerals alltogether!

And as if I did not learn the lesson the first time, I participated in th 2nd round also.

The good part was the hangama that self, a neighbour and a bunch of kids were creating with demands of money back and calls for desired numbers..

There was musical chairs for ladies. 3 of us strategised. We move only when the one in the front moves and touches the next chair. I reached till the final using this strategy. Off course no body dared to call foul. Who will? The perks of not being a kid anymore.

I did try to buy the last competitor out during the final round.

I would have won had the other lady's husband not distracted me. I turned to talk and the music stopped!

The day (night) ended with fruit shop juice with neighbours!

Oh yes and the kids ate the fryums sort of snacks that are wheel shaped. Came to me asking- what is that on the flag- that looks like fryums (they meant the chakra)

Thursday, August 13, 2009

This tag had been doing the rounds and I was waiting to take it up on this day.So very quickly, these are the nicest things the husband has done for me.1. Cherish the very things on myself that I hate - my tummy for instance- even go to the extent of saying that he married me for that reason2. Never ever going for boys only night- even decided to ditch a stag party for us3. Come with me for every Hindi movie I drag him to and not forcing a "Madrasi" movie on me- and even proactively rent Hindi DVD's4. Being the Vacuum Manager of the home and never hesitating to clean up the home when the help has vamoosed5. Being a good Dad (I was shocked that you could wash the kids' bums more expertly than me- I mean, that is not allowed.. Mamma is supposed to be better in all these stuff)6. Eating what I cook and even better for liking bread, fruits and maggie without any additions.7. Being my advocate when I do the dinners- for proudly presenting and describing what I cook to the guests8. Being my "social" support- The success of my social gatherings are largely because you are a good conversationalist- Forget that you may just manage to talk the pants off other people!9. Coming with me to my blog parties10. Participating actively in my shopping11. Getting me correctly fitting jeans & trousers-now that's a feat I must say12. Coming with me for all doctor appointments13. Always encouraging me in my work- even when I want to give up13 good things about you this 13th of AugustHappy Birthday Darling... Here's wishing you success in your venture!

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

He came home travelling the 3 hour distance in the night, timed to arrive at 12 am. He arrived at 11.45 pm. Sat on the doorsteps waiting for the clock (ahem watch, ahem mobile phone) to strike 12.On the dot, he got up to ring the door bell.The power...went off.

Not to be deflated, he rang the sleeping wife inside the house.A groggy, mildly irritated (ahem, very irritated at the power cut) voice answered the call.Happy Birthday To You......Open the door....The knight in shining armour (shining because of the mobile phone light) came in armed with a huge chocolate truffle cake (Hot Breads if you need to know)!-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The sweetest thing he could have done in a not so long time (the last was when he vacuumed the home). Especially because we had discussed that he should not come home as he is busy with the client in Pondy and he would have to rush back in the morning. It was unexpected and very very sweet (now why was it sweet?- because the entire day had been a sweet overload- for those who will ask, I will post about it in a couple of days-for this post- suffice that I had eaten cakes the entire day). I cannot believe that barely 6 hours after eating that last chocolate cake, I would be back in full form hogging the cake as if there is no tomorrow. The kids were (un)ceremoniously woken up with threats of pulling the pajamas down, putting nosy on their mouth and going away ghummi in the car without them.They woke with a ready (Tejas) & Not-so-ready (Ojas) smile and immediately began poking at the cake, on cue (from each other).No correction- Ojas woke up and asked for his share of the candles on seeing the cake which Tejas had gleefully opened for him and which I was trying to close just in case Ojas decided to kick in his sleep and leave a footprint on the face of the cake.The candles were duly lit (3 if u asked) and Tejas fretted for a while as his candle refused to burn as bright as the rest.The cakes were cut by the kids - the husband had thoughtfully got 2 knifes and the knifes were duly licked.And then portions of cake were demanded- like I want to eat H, I want to eat B or I want to eat the silver beads (when was the last time I had a birthday cake decorated with silver beads ?-when I was a little girl in school I think) - and what was left behind was a mass of poked and prodded mangled cake - but still it's cake.So those who come in person to wish me, may get a share of the mangled cake.Don't mind, just think of the love and affection & excitement with which it has been destroyed!-------------------------------------------Thanks Darling- You just made my day!

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

I have been observing for a while how Tejas prefers everything clean and ship-shape.Some recent examples-1. I spilled water on his sandals- he immediately began to fret- paani giraya? yeh mera naya sandal thaa (you dropped water? they were my new sandals)2. The new improved uniform seems to be running color. He spread our his T shirt and said- some body has dirtied my uniform3. He is extremely particular about the proper fold of his blanket. I normally place the blanket on the foot of the bed when I ready the bed for the night. And usually it is just carelessly thrown in the general direction of where both of them would sleep. Tejas will immediately straighten it out and place it in a smooth, neat rectangle.4. He loves to fold whatever hanky or napkin he happens to find- very neatly.5. And he is spelling his name by memory. I am pleasantly surprised and proud.6. Ojas & Tejas got a star each in their diary- Ojas for colouring and Tejas for finishing up his snacks. And the surprise is that they have been getting stars for their homeworks also! I am proud of you babies. Okay, I know they are not great artists but I like the school's philospophy. They sent a note saying that as parents we must not force or expect perfection straight lines, coloring perfectly within the lines or drawing neat pictures.7. On a funny note, Ojas wakes up one morning and says- how did my pajamas become yellow? they were blue naa (He slept through his pajama change sometime in the middle of the night as he had wet them in bed- when will they get sleep trained ? (wail) )8. They read/ heard the Yellow Gorilla on kindersite in which the gorilla eats only bananas and as a result turns yellow. To get back his original color he has to eat all other healthy foods also.Today I gave the kids (yellow) banana and green apple in their snack box. And told them to eat them all up. They say I won't eat banana- I will become yellow! Talk about internalising the stories.

Monday, August 10, 2009

Not exactly decluttering- but just plain old cleaning makes ones life feel much better.The hubby yesterday vacuumed 2 rooms (thanks baby)- I off course intentionally do not know how to vacuum- just cannot believe the dust and grime we were living in.I also did my bit of clearing one kitchen cupboard and decided (finally) that half the stuff in there is not needed and ruthlessly threw them away, before that stray thought could creep in that it could be used for something. For instance, the empty Ferrero Rocher boxes, they are too good to be thrown away. And just cries for some re-use.I could store my jewelry there but then what to do about the multiple jewel boxes I have?Medicines? That's an idea, I could throw away the Godiva box in which I keep my stash of biochemic medicines currently. Ah, decluttering opportunity.Envelopes, cards, letters- Nah we email nowadaysColor pencils, sketch pens... ah may be if only they would take lesser space in the cupboard.Bangles- the box is too slim, takes lots of space and may just open without to much force.The box is too good and I think I am going to pick it back from the trash bag.

Thursday, August 06, 2009

On incessant demands of a story I fangled this one out of the blue.One day the colors of the rainbow were having a fightSaid Voilet- I am the biggest - people are scared of me - they protect themselves from me by wearing sunglassesSaid Indigo- I am the best, I am the color of berries that give Vitamins (don't ask, I could find nothing better)Said Blue- I am omni present, I am the biggest, I am the color of the skySaid Green- I am the most vital. I am the color of the grass and leaves and plantsSaid Yellow- I am the most powerful as I am the color of the SunSaid Orange- No I am the most powerful and dangerous as I am the color of FireRed- I am the best as I am the color of blood- present in everybody

Then came Black - who gobbled up all colors (for a demo) and said see I can eat all of you so I am the most powerful

White came to the rescue- The saviour is better, if I mix all of you you become white So I am the most important one

Wednesday, August 05, 2009

Ojas & Tejas proudly displayed theirs to their class teacher on reaching school.A token of raksha that I tied on their wrists on behalf of their Mausi. And no, this time they did not tug it out as they had to show it to their teacher.Pics have been taken- will be put up later.

And a message to my bhayiaas & behenaas...Swear in the name of the following memories-- the unforgettable one that I threw a stone at you when we were younger- reciting chubby cheeks in the train-throwing banana peels in the ground floor aangan-eating mangoes until the seeds turned white-overloading the large swing with our combined load-playing on the sofas making homes of sofa cushions-chatting late into the night-who ultimately almost always ends up switching off the lights at the end of the day-the bag and the gifts that I would supposedly get you from my hostel (Not!)

Tuesday, August 04, 2009

Mr Strong is ah well, extremely strong- strong enough to lift his home from the corner and get inside! The story is about how he rescues 100 sheep trapped in a soon to be flooded meadow (love the imagery, sheep, meadow....) by putting them all into a barn that he carried across. I love the drawing type illustrations - very cute.

Mr Bump is always having accidents. And one day in true K serial types- he loses his memory

Monday, August 03, 2009

Drove down to PondyWent for the buffet in GRt Sunway and nothing prepared me for the lousy spread.At Rs 350-there was a spread of burnt tasteless kabab, awful pedestrian mutton biriyani, chicken korma (3 on a scale of 10) and a whole host of tasteless vegetarian stuff- saltless oily potatoes, oily fried masala-less veggies, tastleless pasta, dried up daal makhani and the chicken salad was missing.The desserts were again all tasteless- not worth the calories at all.Why am I surprised- because I have had their banquet food a number of times and it is yummy. The kind for which I do not mind travelling all the way from Chennai to Pondy.I was literally foaming at the mouth especially when the manager mentioned at Rs 350 this is what you will get when I exclaimed that there is no non veg at all in the menu.Excuse me while I barf yet again at he food I ate